6 Ways To Be an Effective Sales Manager
Managing sales people is never going to be an easy task because they are notoriously autonomous in their ways.
They often act as if they don't need to be taught anything about the business of selling.
However, anybody can be managed if the manager is highly capable and experienced.
Here are six ways to be an effective sales manager: 1.
Keep to Your Word There's nothing worse than a sales manager who promises to get a new bonus in place and then nothing happens.
This can be demotivating for the sales team and even worse it damages the manager's own credibility.
Next time he or she makes a promise, who is going to believe? 2.
Follow Processes Sales managers are busy doing a thousand things and sometimes reporting can be neglected.
This is very dangerous because the moment the monitoring stops sales people tend to shift their focus to other activities.
This can be very detrimental for target achievement and overall discipline.
3.
Always Recognise Great Work It's true that sales people tend to be very independent types and generally feel that they don't need anybody watching over them.
However, when they do a good job they like to feel appreciated.
A bad sales manager is the one who finds a small fault in performance but seems to never acknowledge great work.
4.
It's Not About Me Sales people sometimes forget that their manager is judged on targets just as much as they are, but a sales manager who spends too much time on his own objectives will run into some difficulty with his team.
Sales people see their manager as someone who can help them do their job properly, not someone who has a personal agenda and nothing else 5.
Be Generous with Your Time Sales managers are normally time stretched and need to manager their calendars carefully in order to maximise their time.
This may well be true but it doesn't mean they have to ignore requests for help from their team, or to cancel a one on one meeting because they see no immediate need.
Sales people want autonomy but they also want their manager to be available for them when they have an issue to solve.
6.
Work on Yourself A sales manager often doesn't get criticism directly from his sales team because they obviously want good relations with their manager.
This can mean that the manager often doesn't realise his or her weak points.
That's why a sales manager should always ask for feedback; even anonymous if need be, in order to be effective as possible.
They often act as if they don't need to be taught anything about the business of selling.
However, anybody can be managed if the manager is highly capable and experienced.
Here are six ways to be an effective sales manager: 1.
Keep to Your Word There's nothing worse than a sales manager who promises to get a new bonus in place and then nothing happens.
This can be demotivating for the sales team and even worse it damages the manager's own credibility.
Next time he or she makes a promise, who is going to believe? 2.
Follow Processes Sales managers are busy doing a thousand things and sometimes reporting can be neglected.
This is very dangerous because the moment the monitoring stops sales people tend to shift their focus to other activities.
This can be very detrimental for target achievement and overall discipline.
3.
Always Recognise Great Work It's true that sales people tend to be very independent types and generally feel that they don't need anybody watching over them.
However, when they do a good job they like to feel appreciated.
A bad sales manager is the one who finds a small fault in performance but seems to never acknowledge great work.
4.
It's Not About Me Sales people sometimes forget that their manager is judged on targets just as much as they are, but a sales manager who spends too much time on his own objectives will run into some difficulty with his team.
Sales people see their manager as someone who can help them do their job properly, not someone who has a personal agenda and nothing else 5.
Be Generous with Your Time Sales managers are normally time stretched and need to manager their calendars carefully in order to maximise their time.
This may well be true but it doesn't mean they have to ignore requests for help from their team, or to cancel a one on one meeting because they see no immediate need.
Sales people want autonomy but they also want their manager to be available for them when they have an issue to solve.
6.
Work on Yourself A sales manager often doesn't get criticism directly from his sales team because they obviously want good relations with their manager.
This can mean that the manager often doesn't realise his or her weak points.
That's why a sales manager should always ask for feedback; even anonymous if need be, in order to be effective as possible.
